Salvia texana

Salvia texana (Scheele) Torr.

Texas sage, Blue sage

Synonym(s):

Salvia texana, at first glance, is very much like Engelmanns sage (Salvia engelmannii), an herbaceousperennial up to one and a half feet tall with purple-blue blooms, but Salvia texana has a longer bloom period and its smaller, darker flowers are topped by unopened green buds. It shares a common name, Texas Sage, with Leucophyllum frutescens, more often known as Cenizo, a very different, much larger shrub. Salvia texana is a native of limestone soils from north-central Texas south to northern Mexico. Native plant experts Sally and Andy Wasowski recommend planting it with other purple-flowering native forbs like Engelmanns Sage and Purple Paintbrush (Castilleja purpurea var. purpurea) among short prairie grasses.